In the bar above the clouds, the same three people who had been present during Daneel's test were back, in the same positions, and they were none the wiser regarding the extraordinary experience that they had all been through together.
There was a marked silence because of this, as they were all powerful individuals who could feel that something had happened here, that they could not recall because it must have been purged by the Overseer after the choice had been made by the one who had passed the test.
Often, in these cases, echoes would be present to give indications regarding what they had forgotten, but they were very hard to decipher, and at the moment, none of them were having any luck in finding out just why they had the strange feeling that whatever had happened was different than all the other instances that they had been through when they had been acting in their capacity as those who were the last layer of protection for the Arena.
Biting his lip with frustration, it was Galagor who spoke first.
"No matter how much time passes, I can never get over just how infuriating this damn feeling is! And this time, I can tell that it was something even beyond what we are used to going through, and that makes my skin crawl more than ever! Sometimes, I wish I hadn't taken this duty…"
In response, Cain only glanced at him, but the bartender chuckled and did not mince any words.
"Leave it, then. I know many who will be more than willing to come and take up your place. They won't mind about things that they have forgotten, and I guarantee that by the end of the day, your post will have been filled, and I might have found someone with a bit more tact when it comes to drinking these heavenly liquids that we have been blessed with over the years."
He said so pointing at a bottle that was on the bar counter, and it was actually the same one that Cain had brought along with him so that he could share it with Daneel.
The bottle, itself, was unremarkable, but the liquid inside was anything but so. It kept jumping around as if it was alive, which caused a very interesting fight that would make once eyes glue to it and wonder just what was making it frolic in this manner.
It was a dark red in color, almost amber, and was also as thick as pudding.
Famous for its effects of calming down people and also allowing them to enter a state of high concentration if taken in moderation and extreme relaxation if taken in excess, it was a highly regulated custom product of the Order, and that was the reason why Cain had had to take that much time to withdraw one from the stores for someone who hadn't even taken the choice yet.
Unlike those people, he had known just how special Daneel was, and that was the reason why he had wanted to strike a good impression. Alas, he had been a bit too late, and now, he didn't even know about the result that had impressed him so much, and had made him drop his jaw.
As if to say "bite me", Galagor actually gulped down another glass of the Merrywine and glared at the bartender before saying, "Yes, it sounds great on paper. We oversee the tests after finding the power levels and identities of those who are competing, and after they are over, even though we don't see the actual battle, our memories are wiped regarding who fought against whom. You remember that they passed, and true, although no one else in the Order will also about know about the reality behind what has happened, they don't have these irritating echoes in their minds which don't go away for weeks. If this was also in the job description, I bet that people will think twice."
Shaking his head knowing that it was fruitless to argue with this man, the bartender was just about to pour him another glass with a rueful expression on his face, but he paused when he received a message.
"The King has arrived with five other people who will be taking the test. We are on call, so we will be the ones overseeing them again. Oh, never mind, it is four people who will be taking the test. The fifth is a Divine Cockroach who is already in the Order. Still, let's see what happens."
This made Galagor throw his hands up in the air with exasperation and say, "Mindless rabble! That king must only have passed because he burrowed in his cockroach shell using his Bloodline, and the Overseer must have chosen him because of it, too. How can he expect others from the Central Continent to replicate such a feat? He's an anomaly, but I highly doubt that the others are, too. It's just a waste of time."
This was the point where Cain finally spoke up, and he did so in a desultory manner while once again glancing down in the direction of the mountain in which the arena had stood for many, many years.
"A waste of time for which you will be heavily compensated. Enough complaints. Let's do our duty."
His words carried a certain weight which those of the bartender would never match, although at first glance, their power levels were only a small realm apart.
Without saying anything else but still grumbling under his breath, Galagor turned in that direction, too, as the bartender also placed away the glass he had been cleaning.
Right away, all three of them were affected by a feeling of déjà vu, and for the briefest of moments, they recalled that the last incident had actually ended in… Shock.
At once, they all looked at each other, with confusion evident in their eyes.
How could that be possible? What could be surprising about a fight where a Cockroach must have defended itself until it was beaten bloody?
Alas, they would probably never find the answer, so they could only store this away in their minds and start to do their job.
They kept an eye on the arena, and even if they couldn't peek inside, they were supposed to be ready to interfere in case they received the signal. That was why their gazes were always kept on that spot, so that they would be ready to teleport if necessary.
Unknown to them, the large arena had been divided into four parts for the four battles, and all four had actually begun.
Daneel was once again in the Hall of Beginning, where he was pacing around with a slightly apprehensive expression on his face.
Once again, he could not help but liken his situation to a parent whose children were writing an exam. The parent would obviously be anxious for the results, and although all they would hope for was that their children would do their best, it was human nature to wish for the best result.
He had already carried out an analysis of what could happen, and it was obvious that both Faxul and Elanev would have no problems in qualifying. At their level, they were better than many in the Big Four, and even if they might not be able to win if someone came with as much a gap as the one that Daneel had faced, they would definitely be able to put up enough of a fight to satisfy the conditions that they would be judged with.
He wasn't worried about Aran, either. As a Mindhunter, if he went all out, there were not many who would be able to stand toe to toe at his level. Again, even if the difference was large, he would definitely be able to get in a few attacks, and that should be enough.
That left… Eloise, and she was the one that Daneel was worried about.
The sect treasure of the Goddess's Sanctum sect had given her topmost potential both as a Fighter and a Mage, but she had been focusing on absorbing Energy and increasing her level rather than developing her fighting skills.
Daneel had considered giving her a top tier fighting technique that could do wonders against those in the Human Realm, but he knew that it would be useless if there was only a day's time to learn it. Also, Eloise had said with a confident smile that he should leave it to her, and he had decided to do so in order to see whether she had learned something which could surprise him.
As he thought about her, he also couldn't help but think back to the moment they had shared along with Skrr, who was actually munching on five lollipops at once.
She was right behind Daneel, and the crunching sound had been present ever since she had woken up. Daneel had already gotten used to it, and he had even given her a sling bag that she wore behind her back from which she continuously picked out more and more lollipops to place in her mouth.
Her appetite seemed to be endless, and Daneel didn't really think that he would have to give her nutrition advice. Cockroaches had always had a knack of getting what they wanted from what they ate even if it was not digestible for humans, so he had decided to just allow her to indulge herself as much as she wished.
She was like a little golden goose who had laid the biggest golden egg, and his already positive impression towards her had reached new heights on calculating that the Ker Gem deposit that she had found had probably more Gems than even those present to the Natural Energised Training Chamber that he had obtained. This meant that his already extensive resources had swelled now to possibly rival even the individual sects of the Big Four, and he had no reason to worry about money for the time being.
As if she could sense him thinking about her, she nuzzled her antennae against Daneel's back, which had already become a sort of sign between them which meant that she was asking what he was thinking about. Her curious nature extended to everything, and she had a penchant for finding innovative ways to ask questions in case he tried to dodge her.
He turned around and patted her, but just as he was about to open his mouth to tell her that he was just waiting for the results… For people appeared behind him.
Wait… What?!
With visible shock appearing on his features, Daneel instantly whirled around to find all four of his sovereigns with beaming expression is on their faces.
But… How?! It had barely been ten seconds!
What the hell had they done?!
What Daneel didn't know… Was that up above, the reaction of the three people was even more intense than his own.
At the moment, the bartender who had been the very symbol of old school elegance was currently drenched with the wine that had been spit out from Galagor's mouth when the result was announced in their minds.
Cain similarly had a shocked expression on his face, but he at least gulped his wine instead of spitting it out.
The bartender looked livid, but even this emotion of his was mixed with extreme surprise.
Four nobodies from the Central Continent… Had just beaten those from the Order in the span of ten seconds.
By coincidence, each of those who had challenged them had been in the exact same level as them.
All three of them had guessed that it might take around 30 seconds for the result to be announced, because even normal people who persevered could run around and try to delay someone at same realm as them. Those that had been sent to weren't individuals who trained in top-tier techniques, and they also had the habit of playing around with their opponents if they were winning.
However… ten seconds. Ten seconds with all it had taken, and the meaning behind this was clear.
All four of these individuals… Were training in techniques that allowed them to surpass most in their realm, even when one counted the Big Four!
How the hell was this possible?
As the bar devolved into confusion for the second time in the span of a few days, Daneel had just asked the system to give him a summary of their memories which were supposed to be wiped off.
Indeed, as a precaution, he had placed a system-created untraceable spell which would store the deleted memories and be retrieved later.
As he went through the data given by the system…he couldn't help but blink and wonder whether it was these four who had done all that he was hearing about.
Faxul and Elanev had been straightforward- they used their Fighter strengths to bombard their opponents in attacks, and because they were well-versed in fighting strong opponents, they had no trouble in beating their opponents with their incredible methods.
Aran had taken a bit of a round-about route. He had only used his normal mage and fighter powers initially, and just as his opponent was about to walk over when he thought he had defeated him, he used that lapse of concentration to launch a Mindhunter attack that made the man believe that he was underwater while being choked by tentacled monsters.
It seemed to be his nightmare, and he had surrendered right away.
Eloise…was the most unique of all.
A teen in the Human realm had appeared to challenge her, and she had actually…just talked.
Using her charm and a sweet smile, she had enraptured the teen and walked towards him with an adorable expression that no one would be able to be hostile against.
Right as she reached him, though…a swift kick had destroyed his jewels, leading to an immediate surrender.
Looking at Eloise who was smiling at him gracefully, Daneel couldn't believe that she was the same person who had done those things.
It seemed…that she had really grown up from the little girl who had naively believed that sleeping with the King would perhaps allow her to save her mother from being killed.
On understanding that her actions had been exposed, she blushed demurely, and that was Cain reappeared.
His clothes had wine stains for some reason, and as soon as he came, he exclaimed, "King, you're really something! I would love to find out how you made this possible, but I'll have to forget it anyway. Anyway, all of you, welcome to the Order! Your King can give you the introduction. Come, the Overseer awaits."
Smiling between themselves, they followed, but in their minds, they were all thinking the same thing.
"First step: Success."